St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1887-01-24
A Report to the Chamber of Commerce in
Favor of Big Canal in
Minnesota,
To Connect the Waters of the Great Tn.
sailed Sea and the Mississippi
River.
Important Showings From Surveys
Made by Two or Three Expert
Engineers.
What the Canal Would Cost--The
Saving in Frefghts--A State
Document.


| committee on Mississippi river, respecting
| the connection by a canal of the waters of
that river and Lake Superior The report
has been made after consultations with men
who have studied this question, and EN-
braces the results of the Investigations of
engineers who have made surveys. The
! tenor of the report is in favor of the pro-
| ject. 1t is as follows:
The committee on the Mississippi river to
| whom was referred the resolutions of J. w
| McClung. asking report upon the feasibility
! and eXpedeucy of connecting the waters of
| Lake Superior with the Mississippi river and
! the best measures to secure the Improvement,
| II found eXpedient and possible, would re-
| spectfuliy report the accompanying commu-
nication from Hon. w. H. c. Folsom, formerly
| state senator from Taylors Falls,
| inclosiug report to the legislature
upon the subject by I. X Stannard
and r. r. Davis and another by George r.
StuntZ showing the feasibility and eXpedi-
ency of the proposed improvement, and Civ
ing facts and figures in detail which should be
printed and preserved for reference, but
which are too vOuminous to allow more than
brief summary in this report. From these
documents we make the following extracts:
In March, 1885, $4,000 was appropriated by
the legislature Of Minnesota for surveys.
Three routes were surveyed by L. X. STAN
nard and r. r. DaviS-One from Tayor's
river, up this river and across the summit to
White river and by that to the lake. Another
at st. Croix to upper st. Croix lake, thence
across the summit to the Bois Brule river,
thence 10 the lake. a third route at st.
CroiX to Kettle river up to Moose lake, Hang
ing HorEs Lake to Left Hand river.
Their conclusions were that the small ap-
preparation did not give them either time or
means TO make any accurate survey of any
route; that the NamekagOn route, 250 miles
lnrGr firr 1Ia RI
the Brule river route was the shortest and
best being los miles long, but had the disad-
vantage of having no natural harbor at the
lake, and the Kettle river route, about 200
miles long, was the most expensive of the
three, but had a good harbor already i'm
proved, at superior bay.
MIR. George K. StuntZ in an article pub
lfShed on the subject, says: "Can Lake St.
CroiX at Saltwater be connected with Lake
Superior by canal and slack water naviga-
ton? Yes. This question has been definitely
settled by the recent examination of the
United States engineers, under the direction
Of Maj. Charles ]. Allen, of the source
OF the st. CroiX river, with refer
ence to the construction of reservoirs. BY
constructing dam mile above
the mouth of Moose creek, on
the st. CroiX, high enough to raise the
water twenty-five feet cutting canal seventy
five feet wide, twelve feet deep, one aud
half miles long across the summit, and build
Brule river high enough to raise the water to
the same height as the dam on the st. CroiX
and you construct a lake thirty miles
long, aHordtng uninterrupted navigation
across the summit for that dis
lance and utilize the waters of the
ST. CroiX and its branches and the Brule's,
aud the amount Of water Us, 300 cubic feet
per minute from the st. CrOiX and 5,S05 per
minute from the Brulel is sufficient to pass
vessels through locks 10 feet wide, 800 feet
l7T1lr HTGanf ~,
hour or u in 81 hours at the driest
season of the year
THIS Sc TILES THE QUESTION
of practicablity." He estimates twenty
eight locks ana dams between Saltwater and
the summit, and thirty locks and ten dams on
the Brule river, and the whole cost as less
than eight millions of dollars, with au aver
age cost per mile OF $4,000 Continuing he
says: xviii it pay to spend this money? 1t
costs now from to Z cents buShel TO ship
wheat by rail from Prescott 10 Lake Superior
and it has to pass through one elevator if
not two, on the route. By water it can be
carried for cents per bushel. The same for
bushel of corn. 1t now costs about
$3.50 per ton for all that class of
goods received in exchange for grain
OIL coal, salt iron and machinery. With this |
Improvement this class of goods can be car !
ried for 60 cents per ton. The surplus crops |
of Northwest Wisconsin, including the valleys
of the Chippewa and st. Croix rivers, capable !
of producing 15,000,000 bushels of wheat an |
nualiy, if they 90 not do it at present and |
Southern Minnesota 30,O00O0G bushels of
wheat and other products equal in tonnage to |
one-third of that amount go, 600, 900 bushels |
surplus. This improvement, on eX- |
ports alone would be a saw
ing to the states of S3,OO0,0OO a year. |
In three years, with favorable seasons. more
than the full cost of the improvement would !
would be saved to the region benefited. The
estimates that dam at the mouth of the ST. |
CroiX holding three-foot head this lake
as reserve from the spring freshets would |
store up 340I360J cubic yards of water to be |
usC in the dry season in August and Sep !
TENDER to improve the navigation of the Mis- !
sissippi river, and continuing this plan to the |
source would afford continuous reservoir |
$50 miles long
ANOTHER ROUTE.
Mir. Folsom whites that the Hon. H. NJ
Rice gave him much valuable information of |
a connection from Upper st. Croix lake to ST. |
Louis river harbOr as being Il practical route |
passing over the high lands dividing the SUI |
perior and st. CroiX waters, through q coun-
try susceptible Of easy improvements, with |
no insurmOuntable hills to overcome-a dis
lance of about thirty-tve miles. ''This route |
would be well supplied with reservoirs, and |
should engineering skill prove II available |
would be the most direct route. Small streams !
between upper st. CroiN lake and the state |
line, flow from the north into the st. Croi. |
river, whose sources almost interlock with |
streams flowing north into st. Louis bay. ! |
would recommend a minute examination of |
all the country between Kettle and St. Croix !
rivers, for herein lies the shortest route to |
Lake Superior, but the shortest route to |
make eastern connections would be by the |
Nemakagon and White rivers to Ashland. !
The enlargement of St. Mary's canal /
and Hay river to give twenty
feet of water and the improvement |
by the Dominion government of the Welland |
and Lachiue canals are all being prepared for
the passage of vessels of 5000 tons burden |
between Duluth and European ports. The
Dominion government has under considera-
ton also q ship canal across the isthmus sew
ering Nova Scotia from the continent, thus
shortening the commercial trade between St.
Lawrence and the Atlantic cities. With all |
these enterprises and our st. Croix canal
opened, we will be from 800 to 500 miles
NEARER THE MARKETS
of the world than at present the route will
be traversed in two-thirdS of the time our
grain going out from the head OF the CONT
nent protected by our northern climate with
out breaking bulk, will reach markets quickly
and be fresh and pure. Figures can hardly
compute the vast amount of transportation
that will ultimately pass over this northern
route. Ocean steamers will be constructed
especially for this inland American trade,
as was the case with the Suez canal.
Hundreds of vessels are employed transport
ing crude iron ore from Lake Superior east
ward for smelling and manufacturing If
portion of this trade could be centered into
our upper Mississippi valley, when the ores
of Superior meet midway the coal from the
south of US, who can estimate the result?
These Northern mineral regions are becom-
ing hives of industry which are being fed
from our prairies.''
Mr.. Folsom concludes his communication
with the following valuable data: ''Our high
latitude which is Sneered at by the sophisti-
Cal reasoner as against the northern route, is
sheer fallacy Boats cannot go to Chicago
until the Straits of Mackinac are open, at
which time they can go to Lake Superior |